


Water Mirror

by Steangine



Series: Crimson Red (Bottom Dante) [9]
Category: Devil May Cry
Genre: AU, Bottom Dante (Devil May Cry), Dog!Rebellion, Fluff, Implied Mpreg, Incest, M/M, MerMay, Merman!Nero, Merman!Vergil, Mpreg, Sibling Incest, Twincest, Very very late, human!Dante
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:00:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25134271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Steangine/pseuds/Steangine
Summary: I haven't proof read this one. I just indulged in some fluff.
Relationships: Dante/Vergil (Devil May Cry)
Series: Crimson Red (Bottom Dante) [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1620022
Comments: 12
Kudos: 84





	Water Mirror

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't proof read this one. I just indulged in some fluff.

A little merman trapped himself into Dante’s net.

He thought at first it was a little shark struggling to get free, because of the shadow shaped like a fish tail. But the moans of fear and frustration sounded like a human’s and, as Dante got close enough to distinguish the figure under the moonlight, he saw his little guest.

“Calm down, baby.” If Dante didn’t live on one of the inlets of the lagoon, far away from the little village of the island, everyone would be awakened in the middle of the night by the loud barks of his dog. She was leaping around the net Dante left in the shallow waters waiting for some stupid crab to crawl in. He put both arms around the dog’s neck to help her calming down and silence her barks; she stopped but a tiny growl kept echoing down her throat. “You scared out little guest.”

Dante didn’t know if that was the first time the little merman encountered a human, but he definitely knew what a knife could be used for: the moment Dante took it out, the snarls turned into enraged cries, and the little merman splashed water around him. The dog set herself on a defensive stance and started barking again.

“Hey, I just want to do this.” Dante grabbed a side of the net and slashed it. “You should be grateful I suck at making nets.”

The shallow water barely reached half of Dante’s calf, and yet the merman managed to drag himself to the deep waters so fast that in a handful of seconds he disappeared in a splash of water. The only noise were the dog’s loud barks.

“Sssh, Rebellion, our guest isn’t here anymore.” Dante bended on his knee and ruffled her head. “Were you scared of him?” The dog whined and licked his forehead. “Hey hey, I’ve already washed my face.” Dante chuckled. “Time to go to bed. You scared me, you know? I thought something happened to you.”

It was the first time Dante met a merman. He heard stories about them, his mother told him countless times about that one day she met a merman herself, but he had always believed she lied to bring some wonder into his life. But now he had the proof his mother wasn’t lying – or she was, but merpeople seemed to exist.

When he woke up in the morning with Rebellion sleeping on his legs, he thought it was a dream, but he checked the net and it was cut.

“I have to repair it.” He sighed, a bit disappointed at the idea he would get to the market later than expected; but the fish wouldn’t wait for him.

So, chair in the water and the umbrella open so he wouldn’t burn under the sun, Dante began repairing his net with the soundtrack of the waves mingles to the splashes of Rebellion playing on the foreshore. From time to time he rested his eyes and glanced at the dark line which cut the water in two halves: the transparent round pond which showed the golden sand and timidly blurred into a shade of pale blue against the deep blue of the open sea. The rocks covered in emerald trees enclosed that small lagoon, Dante’s home, and protected it from the sea beyond.

It was when he raised his eyes for the third time that he saw sprinkles of water. A dart of a fish disappearing under the surface, or so it seemed.

Dante stood up and left the net tied to his chair. “Rebellion.” The dog scampered to his side. “Good girl.” A pat on the head. “Snack time, do you agree?”

He gathered some fruit in a bowl and climbed the rocks on the edge between the shallow clear water and the deep blue sea. Rebellion crouched next to him and pointed her eyes down at the sea, exhaling a low growled bark. Dante feed her with a strawberry, and she forgot about the little shadow swimming in circles few meters from them.

“Don’t eat my fingers.” Dante gently scolded her while looking down.

A little white head broke the water’s surface and looked up at them. From there, Dante couldn’t tell for sure, and the sun’s reflections might trick him, but he thought that little one’s eyes were yellow.

“Let’s see what he wants.” The moment Dante descended one rock, Rebellion stood up and fidgeted on the edge. “Oh right, you are afraid of getting down on your own.” Rebellion was two years old and she was a brave dog, but when she had to descend steep paths. Dante was more than happy to put to use his muscles to raise his beloved labrador on one shoulder and bring her with him. “Huff, you are heavier and heavier. We gotta overcome this fear, sweetheart.”

Rebellion leaped down only when they reached the rock on the water surface, and she jumped in the deep blue. The little white head disappeared into the water and the tail slapped out once in the effort of getting far from the dog swimming to him.

“You are scaring him. I don’t think he understands you only want to play.” Hearing Dante’s voice, Rebellion went back to him and scrolled her fur from water. “Hey hey! I’ve taken a shower already!” Dante chuckled. “I hope you like your fruit with salt.”

For the day, they didn’t catch sight of the little merman anymore.

Almost one week later, the little merman attacked him. Dante was fishing in his favorite spot, sitting on the bottom of the shallow water with his feet dangling in the endless blue, when the merman jumped out from the ocean and bit his arm.

“So you are a little leech.” He commented when he shook his arm, but the little mouth stayed in place. “Did I disturb you while fishing?” The little merman didn’t say anything but glared at him with his round yellow eyes standing out on the black sclera.

Dante took some time to look at what looked two tiny little wings sprouting from his hair like ears, and couldn’t notice that the color of his skin was of a greenish blue which reminded him of one of the many shades the ocean wore during the day, and many red scales covered part of his torso and his tail.

“Little one…” The little merman scratched his skin with his little but pointy fingers. “…do you think you are adding something else to your attack?”

Finally, the boy opened his mouth, showing two rows of sharp-looking teeth. “You are a thief!”

“Oh, so I’ve stolen your dinner.”

“No!” He put on a glare which didn’t manage to diminish his cuteness – Dante just couldn’t feel threatened by him, also because his strength wasn’t enough to hurt him, and his skin was scratched only because his teeth and nails were like the surface of uneven rocks.

“What did I steal?”

The little merman raised one finger to point at the medallion Dante had been wearing around his neck since when his mother gave it to him for his tenth birthday.

“This? I received this from my mother. I didn’t steal it.”

“No!” The boy yelled again. “That’s my father’s!”

His mother told him many times that the stone put inside the metal came from the sea, and maybe the rightful owner went to claim it. Or maybe someone told that little boy a story as well and he believed it.

“Then why didn’t your father come here himself to claim it?”

It looked like Dante hit the right spot, because the little merman flushed in agitation and fidgeted looking down. “…I shouldn’t be here. Daddy doesn’t want me to get close where humans live.”

“What brought you here then?”

“The monster you tamed!”

Dante frowned, but immediately realized who he could be talking about and burst into an amused laugh. “Yeah, she’s a monster when I cook meat, I give you that!”

“But she makes weird noises and her body is covered in strange hairy algae!”

It seemed like the little merman forgot about the purpose of his visit, and trusted Dante enough to talk to him without getting defensive. However, as he glanced aside, his eyes widened and the little merman threw himself into Dante’s arms: his body was cold, yet quite comfortable to touch.

“She’s here!”

Dante turned around, and Rebellion licked his lips making him spit. “Wow, French kiss.” He chuckled. “What’s wrong, baby? You usually make a ruckus wherever you go.”

Rebellion poked his arm with her head and curiously sniffed the white hair hidden on his chest. Dante patted the little merman on the head.

“There, there. She isn’t a monster, she is a dog.”

The big golden eyes spied suspiciously on Rebellion. “What’s a dog?”

“Well, a dog is a furry animal who loves and licks you a lot.”

“…it’s like a shark but on a land?” The little merman changed position and sat on Dante’s legs.

Dante frowned at the comparison. “I don’t know, I’ve never thrown a stick to a shark.”

“Throw a stick?”

Probably, under the sea throwing a stick wasn’t such a common pastime for pets and their owners. All that water made the environment not suitable for wooden sticks or any other thing to be thrown. As Dante expected, the little merman was surprised at how Rebellion chased that little stick and brought it back.

“Is it special?” He asked as Dante took it from Rebellion’s mouth.

“For her it is. It’s her favorite game after cuddles.” Dante tended the stick to the merman. “Wanna give it a try?”

The little boy didn’t seem convinced. He inspected the stick, as if he was looking for some trick. Finally, he decided to take it, but jolted as he noticed Rebellion’s attention was now focused on him. The dog sat down and tilted her head, then leaned down, waiting for the boy to throw the stick.

“Throw it.”

“But I’m strong. What if I throw it too far?”

“Don’t worry. Her nose is pretty good.”

The little merman raised the hand holding the stick, and Dante was sure he blushed, amazed that Rebellion was following the stick as if it was food. All his strength resulted in the stick arriving not that far, but falling into the water because his aim wasn’t so good.

“Oh no!”

He believed it was lost. But Rebellion jumped into the water, splashing him and Dante, and swam to the stick and went back to let it into the little merman’s lap.

“But she can swim!” The boy remained with his mouth wide open, while Rebellion waited for him to throw the stick again.

“Of course she can. She’s a good girl.” Dante chuckled. “And what was that half-assed throw… uhm, what’s your name?”

“Nero.” Nero pouted. “And it wasn’t a half-assed throw!”

“Nice to meet you, Nero. Do you want to try again?”

Nero half nodded, but then he suddenly gasped. “I gotta go home!” He dragged himself on the arms to the edge of the lagoon and dashed few meters far from Dante and Rebellion with a single movement of his tail. “But I’ll be back to take daddy’s necklace!” He disappeared under the surface of the ocean.

Rebellion gave a depressed look to the stick, nudged it with the nose and barked once. She whined and looked at Dante.

“I’m sure he will be back.” Dante hugged her. “Come here, my little girl.”

And he was right, Nero came back few days later. Even if their meeting wasn’t how Dante expected. Nero didn’t approach him carefully, poking his head out the water surface believing no one would notice him.

It was night. Usually, Dante hardly went to the deep sea at night, because he couldn’t see what was lurking behind and he might disturb some creatures without being aware of it. However, the loud cries of pain of a dolphin made him get out from his little house after ordering Rebellion to wait on the beach – she obeyed, sat down on the shore and never diverted her eyes from her master.

Dante used a flashlight, but the small circle of light didn’t go far enough, and he was afraid the dolphin might be further than he should venture. He stopped at the edge of the underwater cliff, and the dolphin stopped crying. It didn’t seem like some predator put an end to his misery; Dante believed the dolphin stopped because he was there, where he wanted him to be.

It was the silly thought of an old man, he admitted, but he laughed at himself only for a second. A second later, something dragged him into the deep abyss. Dante exhaled the air in his lungs in a voiceless scream, and the bubbles abandoned his mouth to reach the surface which was getting further. He turned around to punch or scratch whatever animal ambushed him – even if he couldn’t think of one. Then, two hands clenched on his neck, and his view blurred.

In the dark sea, Dante could see nothing.

He woke up several hours later, with the gentle morning sun caressing his face. Dante knew his head was leaning on something, something too solid to be sand. From far away, he heard Rebellion’s bark and the laughs of a child, so he excluded he was taking a nap using his dog as a pillow. He forced himself to open his eyes.

Above him, there was a man. His severe sharp eyes seemed to be judging him; they had the color of the summer sky. And his hair was pure white, like his own. He was handsome.

“Who are you?” Dante discovered his throat was coarse and itchy, filled with salt. Oh yeah, he was about to be drowned.

“I attacked you last night.”

As quickly as the man replied, Dante smashed his nose with a punch and distanced himself. That man was a merman, and his blood was red. His beautiful eyes would kill him on the spot, if he just could.

“Thank you.” Dante spat out. “What do you want?”

The blood dripping from the merman chin tainted the water, dissolving in pinkish slipstreams. He wiped it with the back of his hand, and it was then when Dante noticed the amulet hanging from his neck.

“How did you–”

Dante raised his hand to his chest and he felt it under his fingers. He had to look down to confirm with his eyes that the sensation on the fingertips wasn’t just a remnant of physical memory, but the real thing. His amulet was still there, around his neck, where it had been since when his mother gave it to him. The perfect copy of it was around the merman’s neck.

“Mpf…” Dante smirked only because he didn’t what the proper reaction would be. “So mom really had an affair with a merman. She wasn’t joking.”

The merman squeezed his eyes in irritation. Dante was sure that the cylindric horns on his head and the crack tracing a V on his chest through the scales emitted a glimmer of blue light. He definitely didn’t look human as he did when Dante was still half submerged in the slumber of unconsciousness. The sharp teeth and long claws gave away what a dangerous predator he might be, and the scales on his body looked more dangerous than Nero’s.

“It is my father who chose a human mistress.”

Dante clicked his tongue. He wouldn’t allow the first merman who came out from the ocean to badmouth his mother. “Sorry if your mommy wasn’t enough for daddy.”

The merman didn’t have time to reply. Rebellion came at them leaping in the water as she followed Nero who could dash even in the shallow water due to his little body.

“Dante! You are awake!” Dante almost expected him to jump into his arms, but Nero changed direction at the last moment and darted to Vergil. “Father!” Nero hugged him, and Dante was sure that the merman’s severe lips bent in a feeble smile. However, he only caught a glance of it, because Rebellion put both paws on his chest to lick his face.

“Hey, I’m glad you are fine too, baby. Did you take care of Nero? Good girl.” Dante calmed her and made her sit down, then caressed her head. “Why did you drag me into the water? Nice trick using a dolphin.” He crossed his arms to make clear that he wasn’t so happy at the merman’s presence in what he considered his territory.

“Because I thought you wanted to abduct my son and kill him, or worse, put him in those huge tanks and display him to your kin.”

“My kin died when I was a child.” Dante replied with a cold voice. “What’s your name?”

“And what’s yours?”

They glared at each other, waiting for the other to surrender first. But Nero put an end to that useless silent bickering.

“My father’s name is Vergil, he is Dante, and she is Rebellion.”

Hearing her name, Rebellion licked Nero’s face and made him chuckle. Vergil wrinkled his nose at the view of his son being touched by a land creature, but he allowed it because Nero was enjoying it.

“When are you leaving?” Dante asked. “Nero is welcome anytime he wants.”

“Don’t worry. You will never see nor hear of us again.”

But Vergil didn’t know how much he was wrong. Only two days after he tried to kill Dante, he and Nero were again at the lagoon. Nero was swimming in the deep-sea leading Rebellion, who was slower but was doing her best to catch up.

“ _You will never see nor hear of us again._ ” Dante didn’t know why Vergil was nearby the shallow water instead of being closer to his son. “Is this some merpeople language code which means _we will come here every day_?”

“You wouldn’t understand.” Vergil cut him off.

“I see. You can’t say no to Nero.” Dante sat on the cliff and let his legs being cradled by the weak marine current. “So, what kind of merman is dad?”

“Why do you ask?”

“Because my mother always said he was a handsome and charming man, very kind and understanding.” Dante sank the hands in the sand and sifted it. “It doesn’t say much, I can find you at least ten women at the port who would say the same about ten different men.”

Vergil’s default glance seemed to be a glare, so Dante couldn’t tell if he was pissed or not. “He was strong and reliable. The strongest merman in this ocean.”

“He died then.”

“Humans killed him when I was younger.”

Dante found a small empty shell. He handed it to Vergil, but he didn’t take it, so he put it back. “They killed my mother as well.”

“Why?”

“Because she didn’t want to warm their beds.” Dante found a pebble and made it leap on the water three times. “I killed them all.”

“It’s easier finding men on a land than a ship in the ocean to drag them all to their death.” Vergil replied.

“I didn’t know this was a challenge. And the land is bigger than you imagine.” Dante shook his head. “How is your mother?”

“I don’t know, I’ve never met her.” Vergil paused and looked at Nero helping Rebellion climbing on the rocks; he pushed her from behind, and she dragged him on the rock through his arm. “Father said I have a twin.”

Dante rubbed the back of his head. “…she was beautiful and gentle. She always knew what to say.” He turned around and was surprised that Vergil was looking at him.

“Father said the same.” He admitted.

They stayed until the sunset, then left diving in the orange water.

Few nights later, Dante woke up and went into the sea. There was no logical explanation, it was like someone ordered him to do so and he couldn’t help but obey. He took off his clothes and left them behind on the beach. The water slowed his pace down, but as he reached the edge of the cliff, he dived into the dark mirror under him.

Underwater, he felt cold hands grabbing his arms. Sturdy scales brushed him without leaving any injury, and a cold body pressing against his. Vergil’s lips were unexpectedly warm.

The sun was high into the sky. Vergil pretended Nero remained under the shadows of the trees projected on the water. “The sun will burn you, if you stay too much under it.” That was what his father always repeated him when Vergil asked him if the scar on his back was the memory of a fight. Vergil didn’t want Nero to get hurt.

“Play here with Rebellion.” Vergil admonished him.

“Okay father.” Nero replied and a small waterfall poured on his head. “Dante!” He spat around and laughed.

Dante had just poured water with a bucket. “This way you’ll remain wet.”

“I’m wet already!”

Rebellion came back with the ball proudly into her mouth – Vergil believed that if he threw it far enough, she wouldn’t be able to retrieve it. Then, she proceeded to shake off the excess of water from her fur, showering everyone around her. Vergil was the only one who pretended to be unfazed by that; he showed the palm of his hand, and Rebellion let the ball fall on it.

“Very good.” This time, he threw it on the beach.

“Great, so she will become a breaded steak.” Dante complained.

Vergil observed him and put a hand on his stomach. “You shouldn’t stay out too much, especially when the sun is so high.”

“You worry too much.” Dante put his forehead against Vergil’s. “I’m fine.”

And that was the truth.

**Author's Note:**

> Rebellion is a good girl.


End file.
